William Fox (9 August 1813 – 1881) was an English clergyman and

palaeontologist Paleontology (), also spelled palaeontology or palæontology, is the scientific study of life that existed prior to, and sometimes including, the start of the Holocene epoch (roughly 11,700 years before present). It includes the study of fossi ...

who worked on the

Isle of Wight The Isle of Wight ( ) is a county in the English Channel, off the coast of Hampshire, from which it is separated by the Solent. It is the largest and second-most populous island of England. Referred to as 'The Island' by residents, the Isle of ...

and made some significant discoveries of dinosaur fossils. The Reverend William Fox was born in

Cumberland Cumberland ( ) is a historic county in the far North West England. It covers part of the Lake District as well as the north Pennines and Solway Firth coast. Cumberland had an administrative function from the 12th century until 1974. From 19 ...

on 9 August 1813. He moved to the Isle of Wight in 1862 to take up the post of curate at the Parish church of St Mary the Virgin in Brixton (now known as

Brighstone Brighstone is a village and civil parish on the Isle of Wight, 6 miles southwest of Newport on the B3399 road. Brighstone was previously known as "Brixton". The name derives from the Saxon name " Ecgbert's Tun". Brighstone is the largest vi ...

). He resigned his post in 1867 but continued to live in the area to carry on his collecting. In 1875, he became curate of nearby Kingston, near

Shorwell Shorwell (pronounced Shorrel by some locals and Islanders) is a village and civil parish on the Isle of Wight, United Kingdom. It is from Newport in the southwest of the island. Shorwell was one of Queen Victoria's favourite places to visit o ...

.p15 The Complete Dinosaur by James Orville Farlow, M. K. Brett-Surman Although lacking formal scientific training Fox was remarkably astute and discussed his findings with eminent palaeontologists of the day including

John Hulke John Whitaker Hulke FRCS FRS FGS (6 November 1830 – 19 February 1895) was a British surgeon, geologist and fossil collector. He was the son of a physician in Deal, who became a Huxleyite despite being deeply religious. Hulke became Huxley's ...

(1830-1895) and Sir

Richard Owen Sir Richard Owen (20 July 1804 – 18 December 1892) was an English biologist, comparative anatomist and paleontologist. Owen is generally considered to have been an outstanding naturalist with a remarkable gift for interpreting fossils. Owe ...

(1804-1892). Fox had easy access to Brighstone Bay from his home, Myrtle Cottage in Brighstone, and so spent many an hour collecting fossils, much to the detriment of his pastoral work; in fact, it was said of him at the time, by the wife of the vicar, that it was "always bones first and the parish next". He is also quoted as having written in a letter to Owen "I cannot leave this place while I have any money left to live on, I take such deep icin hunting for old dragons". He died in 1881 aged 68 or 69. In 1882 Fox's collection of more than 500 specimens was acquired by the

Natural History Museum A natural history museum or museum of natural history is a scientific institution with natural history collections that include current and historical records of animals, plants, fungi, ecosystems, geology, paleontology, climatology, and more. ...

after his death. Fox is credited with the finding of several species, most described by his friend Owen, and named by him after their finder. These include ''

Polacanthus ''Polacanthus'', deriving its name from the Ancient Greek polys-/πολύς- "many" and akantha/ἄκανθα "thorn" or "prickle", is an early armoured, spiked, plant-eating ankylosaurian dinosaur from the early Cretaceous period of England. I ...

foxii,

Hypsilophodon ''Hypsilophodon'' (; meaning "''Hypsilophus''-tooth") is a neornithischian dinosaur genus from the Early Cretaceous period of England. It has traditionally been considered an early member of the group Ornithopoda, but recent research has put this ...

foxii,

Eucamerotus ''Eucamerotus'' (meaning "well-chambered", in reference to the hollows of the vertebrae) was a genus of sauropod dinosaur from the Barremian-age Lower Cretaceous Wessex Formation ( Wealden) of the Isle of Wight, England. History and taxonomy J ...

foxi,

Iguanodon ''Iguanodon'' ( ; meaning 'iguana-tooth'), named in 1825, is a genus of iguanodontian dinosaur. While many species have been classified in the genus ''Iguanodon'', dating from the late Jurassic Period to the early Cretaceous Period of Asia, Eu ...

foxii'', '' Calamosaurus foxii'' (formerly ''Calamospondylus'') and ''

Aristosuchus ''Aristosuchus'' is a genus of small coelurosaurian dinosaur whose name was derived from the Greek ἄριστος (meaning bravest, best, noblest) and ''σουχος'' (the Ancient Greek corruption of the name of the Egyptian crocodile-headed go ...

''.

Confusion with William Darwin Fox

There is considerable confusion between Fox and his more celebrated contemporary the similarly named Rev.

William Darwin Fox The Reverend William Darwin Fox (23 April 1805 – 8 April 1880) was an English clergyman, naturalist, and a second cousin of Charles Darwin. Early life Fox was born in 1805 and initially raised at Thurleston Grange near Elvaston, Derbys ...

(23 April 1805 - 8 April 1880) who was also an amateur scientist and lived and worked on the Isle of Wight at the same time. William Darwin Fox is sometimes ascribed the credit for early dinosaur discoveries. However William Darwin Fox was noted for his geological work, and entomology, but is not recorded as having any particular interest in dinosaurs.
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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fox, William 19th-century English Anglican priests English palaeontologists 1813 births 1881 deaths Parson-naturalists